Most of those people hailed from Dolupara, Manikchari and Fittipara of Fatikchhari union. On last Wednesday, they took refuge at the Gagra Community Centre leaving all their belongings behind after staying holed up in the dense jungle for about three weeks to evade capture by the anti-peace accord gunrunners.

But the community centre too appears to be of little comfort for the refuge takers as conditions continue to worsen because of an acute shortage and outbreaks of diseases. Children in particular there are dangerously exposed to such diseases as diarrhoea and malaria.

Lately the district administration have sent two metric tons of food and a medical team there, but it was very negligible against their needs.

The evictees, now sheltered at the community centre, alleged that UPDF men, coupled with notorious Kashem gang of Fatikchhari, upped the repression on the villagers since their clash with pro-peace accord operatives in the middle of August. They had killed an elderly man in Dolupara and abducted two others. They torched five houses and ransacked four others filling the villagers with panic.

Besides, extortion and threats of violence also by some Islamic extremist outfits added to their misery and eventually forced them to leave home.

Despite the clear allegation made earlier by the people of indigenous villages in the district's Kawkhali upazila, who forced by armed UPDF men and their associates to flee home about a week ago, no drive was seen to act against the gunrunners, local people alleged.

On September 11, former Union Parishad member of Kawkhali's Fatikchhari Union Bono Kumar Chakma, a resident of Dolu para village, went to Kawkhali police station with a prayer (General Diary, GD) expecting action against the gunrunners belong to anti-peace accord'97 indigenous party United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF).

"But the on duty Sub Inspector Rahman told me to file a case specifying some name", Bono Kumar told journalists visited them on Friday noon at Ghagra Community Centre, where his family and other 68 indigenous families took refuge after flee native village residences.

They conduct rampant extortion in indigenous villages, loot domestic cattle and forced villagers to back them with cash and other supports, people took refuge at Ghagra alleged.

Kawkhali thana police finally recorded the General Diary (GD) as a regular case Saturday. "An officer and some forces has been send to the hilly localities for investigation whether any armed man exist there or not what most of the dailies reported yesterday", Officer in charge (OC) Ratan Kumar Das Gupta of Kawkhali thana told newsmen yesterday.

The hillocks with dense forest and chharas (thin canals) in the Kalapahar, much talked for abduction of three foreign citizen allegedly by anti-peace accord'97 indigenous party United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF) on February 2001, and adjacent hills under Rangamati's Kawkhali upazila are safe haven for gunrunners, locals said.

More than 200 armed men allegedly belong to the anti-peace accord' 97 indigenous party United Peoples Democratic Front (UPDF) along with underground operatives from neighbouring Chittagong roaming inside the hilly districts of Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT).

Fatikchhari, Rawzan and Hathazari upazila of Chittagong district are closely adjacent to Rangamati's Kawkhali and Khagrachhari's Laxmichhari upazila, mostly dense forest.

Sources said, "When the UPDF men face any encounter they then took shelter to Fatikchhari, Rawzan and Hathazari jungle area and the Chittagong criminals also took shelter to CHT jungles".

Moniswapon's Remarks
The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) affairs deputy minister Moniswapon Dewan who also in charge of the district (Rangamati) minister expresses ignorance over "whether any action will start against the gunrunners or not".

"I don't know anything, I ordered the Deputy Commissioner to provide humanitarian aid for affected people took shelter at Ghagra", he said when this correspondent contacted him over telephone at his Dhaka Office at 1:45pm yesterday.

"However, I asked the DC to investigate into the matter", he said and added, "The Home Ministry and concerned others will act soonI hope".

UPDF protests
United People Democratic Front (UPDF) central leader and former Rangamati district unit convenor Shachib Chakma phoned to journalists yesterday and said they were not involve with any violent attack on Kawkhali villagers. "Involving UPDF with this was intentionally was done", he said. "We don't have any link with Kashem bahini and long-beard armed men, which was reported".

PCJSS back up
Parbattya chattaygram Jono Sanghaty Samity (PCJSS) provides humanitarian help to the people took sheltered at Ghagra through their organisational network. "Though the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council is due to provide all sorts of help to affected people but can not do so as the government does not gave it any fund", said senior PCJSS leader Usaton Talukder yesterday.

"The government is responsible for ensure peace and security to people and it must have to play an active role", he said. "Maintaining security to people need an united move", he added.

Former AL lawmaker Diponkor Talukder
Former Awami League lawmaker and district unit president of AL Diponkor Talukder went to visit the villages in Kawkhali, left abandoned by indigenous people for alleged repression by UPDFgunmen, yesterday, yet to return till 7:24pm in the evening.